Skin

Change in the House of Flames

Endeavor walked the hallways feeling weightless. All these years he kept his private life, well... private. In the dark. Locked away. The same way a villain could smile and laugh, show kindness when they want to, a hero could also be a not so pleasant person in reality. Hero's are put up on a pedestal. Someone for people to praise and admire. Pray to when they feel scared and need protection, hoping they'd come out of the shadows to save the day. A real hero has to want to help people out of the goodness of their heart. Not just because it's their job.

For years and years, Endeavor played this part. The part of a hero. You could only keep an act up for so long until the truth eventually comes out.

Endeavor walked back into his sons hospital room, not knowing what to expect. He took one look at Touya, noticing his shiny teal eyes as the sun grazed the side of his face. The light reflecting off of his black hair made the strands of red more visible. He remembered how much Touya took after his features. Red hair, blue eyes, even his passion to be strong matched his own. How could he ever lay a hand on him? It was a shame that he just barely started to regret all he's done.

"Why?" Touya's face flinched. "Why did you-"

"I'm trying to make things right, Touya." He explained, "I know it's too late but I want you to see that I'm changing."

Touya crossed his arms over his chest, "Hope you don't expect me to just drop all the vendettas I have against you and just move on. You ruined me, Enji. I will always hate you and no matter what you say or do will ever change that."

He looked down, "I know that. I know you don't care about my apologies but I am truly sorry. If it wasn't for me, you wouldn't have turned out like this. Natsuo wouldn't have felt the need to move far away. Your sister wouldn't be stressing herself about trying to fix this broken family. And Shouto... he wouldn't have rejected his power and have a constant battle with himself if it wasn't for me. I would be so ashamed if your mother ever saw how things got worse after I sent her away."

Touya's eyes began to burn slightly. The thought of his mother seeing him like this scared him to death. What would she say? What would she do? How would she feel knowing that the son she tried to protect turned into a murderer.

He looked at his scarred arms and felt his rough face. "Sometimes we just have to accept that it's too late for change. We're both too far gone and won't be forgiven." Leering over at Endeavor's hulkish body, then back down at his burnt one, "We just have to embrace the fact that we aren't good people. There is no true redemption because our sins will always be apart of us."

"You're not evil, Touya."

He raised his eyes as blood dripped from his stitches, "Evil, lost, corrupt, whatever you wanna call it... I'm not the same person as I was 10 years ago. I don't regret anything I've ever done because all I cared about was retribution. And I got that today, thanks to you."

"You're bleeding, son..." He felt the blood at the center of his cheek and wiped the drop away with the pad of his thumb. "Listen to me, it's never to late to change. For you that is. You're strong. You're smart. You're fearless. And I should have let you know that a long time ago."

All these words Endeavor were speaking were just that. Words. It didn't matter what he said, it wouldn't change anything. "Let's say that you're right, maybe change is possible. But you have to be alive for that to happen. I've said it once before, Touya Todoroki is dead. He was weak. But not Dabi. Dabi is the fearless one that finally stepped up to the man who created him.  Dabi was the one who walked out of those flames in that alleyway all those years ago. And you're insane if you think I'm going to give all that up just for some stupidass people to accept me in this society."